In a fraction of a second, the turned the holiday into a nightmare. At least 50 passengers, a tour guide and a driver were aboard the bus in Wednesday night plunged down a steep on the Portuguese semesterön Madeira.
the Bus was traveling on a narrow road and was just about to pass a sharp curve when the driver lost control of the vehicle. A film that has captured the sequence of events shows how the bus voltar several times before it finally lands on a rooftop. Pictures from the scene show a lot of havoc.
confirmed fatalities and a 20-century skadads. All of the deaths reported to be germans, something that, at lunchtime on Thursday had not yet been confirmed from German sources.
Later in the day, Germany's foreign minister Heiko Maas to travel to Madeira in order to personally meet the survivors and to thank the Portuguese for the rescue operation. On the trip is also German doctors, psychologists, and consular staff, he says on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/HeikoMaas/status/1118822994745397248– The tragic bus crash on the island of Madeira has rocked us hard, writing the river Maas in another tweet.
" Our thoughts go out to the families of the victims and to the injured.
both in Berlin and in the vicinity of the scene of the accident, and the German foreign ministry has set up a phone line where concerned family members can contact.
Authorities on the island of Madeira has declared three days of mourning and prime minister of Portugal Antonio Costa has sent condolences to chancellor Angela Merkel.
”It is with deep sadness that I read about the accident in Madeira,” writes Antonio Costa on Twitter.
the Cause of the accident was at noon on Thursday are as yet unknown. According to unconfirmed reports in the local media, it may have been caused by a mechanical failure.
the tourist group was on their way from their hotel to a restaurant inside in the provincial capital Funchal when the bus, belonging to a charter company, went off the road, just 200 metres from the hotel.